TWO men identified as suspects in the Bangkok bomb blast have handed themselves in to Thai police.

Vivian Chan has been named locally as among the victims of the Bangkok bomb blast

The pair were captured on CCTV footage in the moments before Monday's blast.

The men, distinctive by the red and white T-shirts they were wearing, stood up from a bench just before the main suspect, wearing yellow, left his backpack at the Erawan shrine.

Detectives are now questioning the pair.

It comes as police claimed the Bangkok bomber who killed 22 people was working as part of a network of at least 10 attackers – and that the atrocity was planned a month in advance.

Earlier, police said they believed at least three people, including a foreign man, were involved in the attack on a famous city shrine.

But on Thursday police chief Somyot Poompanmuang said: "It is a big network. There was preparation using many people.

"This includes those who looked out on the streets, prepared the bomb and those at the site and those who knew the escape route.

"There must have been at least 10 people involved."

However, a spokesman for Thailand's ruling junta said the attack was "unlikely" to be the work of international terrorists and that it wasn't aimed at Chinese tourists.

On Thursday afternoon, Thai police released two more images of the main suspect, wearing the trademark yellow T-shirt, as he travelled in a tuk-tuk to the shrine.

EPA

The suspected bomber involved in the attack sits in a Tuk Tuk as it heads to the shrine

Vivian Chan Wing-Yan, a 19-year-old law student, has been named locally as among the 22 dead in the terror attack on Thailand's capital which Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said was "the worst incident that has ever happened in Thailand".

She was studying at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London and lived in Hong Kong.

Miss Chan was travelling in Thailand with her friend, Arcadia Pang Wan-Chee, 24, when they were both killed in yesterday's explosion, the South China Morning Post reported.

The pair were among at least 20 people, about half of them foreigners, who died after a pipe bomb went off at the Erawan Hindu shrine popular with tourists, Hindus and Buddhists.

At least 120 were injured and body parts were strewn all over the road alongside the charred skeletons of motorbikes.

REUTERS

Arrest warrant issued for Bangkok bomber spotted on CCTV footage

HOTSPOT MEDIA

Vivian Chan Wing-Yan, 19, has been named locally as the British woman killed in Bangkok

It comes as friends of former Harrow International School, Hong Kong, pupil Miss Chan were in shock after hearing of the food blogger's death.

Michelle Lou said: "She was a really kind and cheerful person in general – she really loved to travel around and just go to a lot of different, good restaurants."

She added Miss Chan was a big fan of 'Canto-pop' - Cantonese pop music - and everybody at school knew her favourite artist was Joey Yung, an award-winning Hong Kong singer and actress.

The star, who had met Miss Chan, posted a tribute to her on her Facebook page which said: "You have left a deep impression in me. Your wit, loveliness and your smile with dimples on the cheek.

“Thank you for being in my life. Our last conversation you said you would study hard and then we meet again.

"I never thought life could be that fickle. I hope you rest in peace.”

The Thai Society at SOAS has also set up a Facebook tribute page to Miss Chan, with hundreds paying their respects.

Police Lt. Gen. Prawut Thavornsiri, a police spokesman said: "The yellow shirt guy is not just the suspect. He is the bomber,"

The chilling footage shows a man wearing glasses and a distinctive yellow shirt arriving at the holy site, before sitting down on a bench and taking off his backpack.

He then calmly walks away without his bag, 15 minutes before the fatal explosion took place at 7pm local time on Monday.

Authorities said they are "quite close" to identifying the man who they said did not appear to be Thai.

Defence minister Prawit Wongsuwan said: "It is much clearer who the bombers are, but I can't reveal more right now. We haven't ruled out terrorism."

CCTV

CCTV has been released of a suspect believed to be linked to the bombings

Government spokesman Major General Weerachon Sukhontapatipak, said the character of the bombing was "quite different" from previous bombings by southern Thai insurgents.

Previous reports had said the bomber could be from the southeast Asian country's northeast, which is the heartland of the anti-military government Red Shirt movement.

Other reports said the bomb may have been related to Muslim separatists in the south of the country.

Officials admitted they had no idea that the bombing was planned – but said it was aimed at destroying the country's economy by targeting a tourist area.

Mr Prayuth said: "This is the worst incident that has ever happened in Thailand.

"There have been minor bombs or just noise, but this time they aim for innocent lives. They want to destroy our economy, our tourism.”

Following the blast the Thai baht currency plunged to its weakest level since April 2009.

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The grenade was dropped above ferries but fell into the water

Today Bangkok was even more on edge after two more explosive devices were set off in the Thai capital.

One bomb was thrown next to a rail station near the Saphan Taksin BTS skytrain just hours after another small explosive device was thrown from a bridge into the Chao Phraya River in central Bangkok.

The device thrown from the bridge is thought to have been a hand grenade. However, it missed its intended target and fell into the river below, before exploding beneath the surface.

The incident happened beneath the Taksin Bridge, in the centre of the city, where a number of ferry companies transport tourists and locals around the city’s waterways.

A police officer confirmed there were no injuries and police divers are currently at the scene and have sealed off the area while they look for and collect evidence.

Colonel Natakit Siriwongtawan, deputy police chief of the Klongsan district, said an unidentified man threw the explosive near a busy pier on the city’s Chao Phraya River and that it landed in a canal.

He said: "If it did not fall in the water then it certainly would have caused injuries."

Two British travellers have told how they feel "very, very lucky" to be alive after narrowly missing the explosion.

Thomas Mahghan and Jared Smith, both 22 from Faversham, Kent, had been staying in a hostel in the same street and were just one road away in a taxi at the time.

They did not think much of the explosion noise because Bangkok is very noisy but then they saw sirens and Mr Smith's mother rang him up in tears, checking if they were ok.

Mr Maughan said: "We had shivers down our spines upon realising how close we were.

"There seemed to be many Thai people staring at their phones with very serious looks upon their faces clearly having just read what had happened.

"It's very sad, especially as we've found Bangkok to be such a happy city with Thai people always willing to go out of their way to help us.

"I'm angry that someone can kill so many innovent people so carelessly seemingly without any target."

The pair said the bombing made them feel less safe in the city centre so headed out of the city.

Mr Maughan added: "We are safe and unharmed but having been in the same area nearby, feeling very very lucky. Thoughts go out to those who weren't."

Nicholas Razzell

Security camera CCTV released by the Thai Authorities showing a male suspect wearing a yellow shirt

Currently the British government is not advising Britons to avoid Bangkok despite the explosion.

Travel advice issued by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) states: "A bomb exploded at 7pm on 17 August 2015 at the Ratchprasong intersection next to the Erawan shrine in central Bangkok.

"The police have confirmed casualties, including the death of a British national.

"There are reports of a further small explosion on 18 August near the Saphan Taksin Sky Train station in central Bangkok. There are no reports of casualties.

"The British Embassy is in contact with local authorities. You should monitor news reports, follow the advice of the local authorities and take extra care."

Briton and former Bangkok resident Lucinda-Jane Chastain witnessed the blast at the Rajprasong intersection, which is often used for political demonstrations.

She told Sky News: "It was just this massive explosive noise. The whole building shook.

"We all ran to the windows. It was quite hard to see what was happening but we could see debris in the street.

"All we can see is a horrible mess on the road. This is at the very heart of Bangkok.

"It's the last place in the world you'd expect something like this to happen."

REUTERS

Experts investigate the Erawan shrine at the site of a deadly blast in central Bangkok

AP

This mobile phone image shows the carnage direclty after the explosion

Thailand's capital has been relatively peaceful since a military coup ousted a civilian government in May last year which came after several months of sometimes violent political protests against the previous regime.

However, in recent months tensions have risen as the ruling junta has made clear it may not hold elections until 2017 and wants a constitution that will allow some type of emergency rule to take the place of an elected government.

Bombing in Bangkok

Tue, August 18, 2015

A bomb has exploded in central Bangkok, Thailand, killing 27 people with the death toll still rising.

More than 900,000 Britons visit Thailand each year and although bombings are rare in Bangkok, they are more more common in southern Thailand, where a separatist insurgency has been flaring for several years.

The last major bombings in Bangkok occurred on New Year's Eve at the end of 2006, when a series of explosions at celebrations around town killed at least three people and wounded dozens.

The 2006 bombings occurred just three months after a military coup ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, and there was speculation that his supporters carried out the attacks in revenge. However, the bombings were never solved.

AP

A policeman photographs debris from an explosion in central Bangkok

IG

The location of the bomb

In March this year, several arrests were made in connection with a grenade that was tossed at Bangkok's Criminal Court.

Those detained were apparently sympathisers of the pro-Thaksin Red Shirt movement.

Critics of the current military government say some of the bombings may have been carried out by the junta to justify its continued suppression of basic rights and liberties - which the Government denies.

In April, a car bomb exploded at a shopping mall on the resort island of Koh Samui in south east Thailand, injuring seven people.

The motive was unclear, though the government suggested it was linked to politics.